In the late nineties Wisdom was formed in Hungary. Via Hammer/Nail Records they released some well-received sturdy power metal albums and they could tour abroad. Last years things were a bit silent around the band. They went through strenuous days, but attack very bravely now with their excellent invigorated fourth album ‘Rise Of The Wise’. That is why we called bassist Máté Molnár, one of the founders of the band, who hopes the best for the future. Thumbs up, because the new album is amazing!

Wisdom was founded in 2001. How was the Hungarian metal scène back then?I think in 2001 it was better than now. Back then there was a new wave of heavy metal in Hungary not so long before. Hammer Records was founded around 1997 and they were doing well, our band found a great home for our records and we had enough work and possibilities to expand. Until 2007 it was perfect. Everything went well and the band grew bigger and bigger, but then recession came to the world and during and after this recession many troubles happened, especially in the music business. It is very difficult now for a Hungarian band to start. We are a bit in a lucky position, because we have the possibility to play shows in other countries, not only here in Hungary, but for the bands which can only play in Hungary, it is quite difficult now.

What happened since the previous album ‘Marching For Liberty’ in 2013?Unfortunately we could not play so much, but we did a tour with Powerwolf. We played in Vosselaar in Belgium. It was a small tour for us, about two weeks. Later we went on tour with Majesty and also played at the Biebob in Belgium. That was in the Spring of 2014. After that we played on many festivals. It was very good. After the festival season we had some problems with our bookings and we imagined a different future for the band. That was a real hard time for us. We could not have tours and at the end of 2014 our Facebook page was crashed. Many bad things happened around that time. In 2015 too. Many troubles with the band. I really hope that it will change after the release of the new album. I really hope so, because we have many interviews and magazines are really interested in our new album.

That is good to hear! But your friend and guitarist Gabor Kovacs is still with you, isn’t he?Yes, we founded the band together and we operate the band for fifteen years, since the beginning. We have the same goal and we work hard. It is a cooperation. We quarrel a lot sometimes, but finally we come to decisions to follow the way we want to follow. It works very well since the beginning, but I do not know what the future brings. But soon we have five shows with Sabaton again, that is something to look forward to. We can’t wait. The singer will sing on our new album. There is one song, the title track, ‘Rise Of The Wise’ Joakim will do some guest vocals. We are honoured that he accepted our invitation.

What do you think of the new album yourself after finishing it?People who liked ‘Marching For Liberty’ will love this one as well, although it was our purpose to bring in more variation and diversity this time. Of course we have some fast metal tracks, that’s our trademark, but we also used choirs and acoustic intermezzos. ‘Nightmare Of The Seas’ is a pirate song and the link with Alestorm is that we lost our guitarist Mate Bodors joined Alestorm, but that was after we had played with them two years earlier. Now we have Anton Kabanen, ex-Battle Beast as new guitarist. We wanted Mate to stay and play in both bands, but Alestorm is very busy and touring a lot. We would not be able to match the agendas. That’s why we decided to work with the Finnish Anton since the beginning of this year. He has also another band Beast In Black with other Finnish guys and me. It can be a problem in future, because we are in both bands, but I hope to be able to manage the concerts. So Anton plays together with us for about eight months, and we decided to take him in the band, because he likes playing with us. We like him very much. There are many bands – especially in Germany – where the members are playing in more than one band. I think it is just a matter of organization.

What can you tell about the lyrical contents of the new album?As usual there are some songs about the wise man, we also have him on the cover again. Of course there are some songs about his life. As far as I remember there are two more songs about his life on this album. It is not really about him sometimes, but about the world he is living in. On the other hand there are many different themes. We try to write about many things, not only one central theme. Of course, like every time since the beginning, we have a little quotation for a song which summarizes the message of the song. All our albums have a quotation in the beginning of a song, from a famous author. This is very important for us, that make people think.

Sometimes I got a Manowar feel from some of the songs…Probably from the title track…

Also from ‘Hero’…That lyric is very Manowar like.

Did you see Manowar live?Yes, at Masters Of Rock (2009) and maybe another time when I was younger. I like them a lot. It was great. My favourite song on this album is ‘My Heart Is Alive’, the one with a moody vibe and still it fits our band very well. It is a new face from the band.

What are the plans for the near future?We have these five shows with Sabaton pretty soon and in the second part of April we plan a headline tour. Finally it will be the first time we will do a headline tour for two weeks in Western Europe. All venues are not scheduled yet, but it is with a Finnish band Amberian Dawn as support. There will be another opener which is not announced yet, but we will make further announcements as soon as possible. I do hope that the tour will go very well, because it will influence the future of the band. Of course, after that we have festivals and hope to do another tour in the Autumn.